Month: February 2016

February Wrap-Up

This was a really good month for me. I’ve been trying to get back into reading and I pretty much don’t watch shows or anything and pick up a book instead is really working out for me.

The Dream Theives by Maggie Stiefvater

So so so so good. I couldn’t give it a 5 stars and I can’t specify why but I think it’s because it just didn’t affect me enough to linger with me.

Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare

It’s a good story don’t get me wrong but it was a bit of a let down but not enough to destroy the book and the story. I just prefer the mortal instruments and in fact I prefer just the first 3 books.

Slammed by Colleen Hoover

Read in a day and was fun and I love it and it was something so different for me.

Reached by Ally Condie

This is nothing like the previous books and it’s really disappointing. I wouldn’t even recommend it if you have read the previous books.

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

I understand the problems people had with this book because of the cheating but it really doesn’t bother me and I enjoyed it because the relationship was really taken seriously so it’s kind of hard to get upset about it.

Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas

Took me a while to get through but I’m glad I did because it was excellent and is a must read. So much happened and I cannot wait till the next book to get more of the story.

Point of Retreat by Colleen Hoover

I liked this but Slammed was just that bit better but it doesn’t feel like this is the end but I’m sure that it is.

March TBR

Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater

FallingKingdoms by Morgan Rhodes

Finding Audrey by Sophie Kinsella

Looking for Alaska by John Green

Cress by Marissa Meyer

This is ambitious for me because I usually aim for 2/3 books a month even though I smashed it this month. I’m very proud of myself but I think I can do this. Anyway this is what I will be reading in the near future so it works.

Let me know if you plan on reading any of these or what you are wanting to read.

So this is going to be very hard not to spoil and I’m going to do my best not to but this goes off of the knowledge that you know what’s happened in the first 3 books. If not then it’s not going to make much sense and will spoil this series that is definitely worth reading. Also if you want to read this book then I highly suggest avoiding anything and just reading it because I had seen a few things and it distracted me a bit and would have been nice to go in blind but that’s because I decided to space these books out a bit more.

Characters

This is gonna take a while… I’m only mentioning the characters that I think are necessary to talk about.

Aelin – I think it is appropriate that Celaena is now called Aelin due to the events in this story in particular. She really grows into a Queen in the book but battles with her past self, pre-kings champion, and the woman/ruler she wants to be. We get to see glimpses of her more brutal and bloodthirsty side and it can be a little unsettling but at the same time you see the shift of calculation and planning that should hopefully be the building blocks of her court. I also really enjoy this due to being the same age and developing while reading the series and that the writing grows and keeps getting better.

Chaol – His character was pretty much demolished for me and I really did not enjoy anything to do with him which is an awful shame because I really enjoyed him in the first two if not three books. I knew that this was going to happen but I think it was just a bit heavy handed.

Manon – I think a major change has happened in Manon throughout this book and it was really compelling to see what was happening with her and her coven and the decisions she had to make and the leadership she had to follow. I like that the character has more substance now and that she’s beginning to think for herself and I can’t wait to see what else will happen. I know she’s meant to be the enemy or at least working for the enemy but I think it’s ok to like reading about her and her life and history so that there’s more to the lore and world building.

Dorian – If you read this book you will understand why we don’t get a lot of Dorian and I’m glad because he wasn’t my most favourite of characters and I’m glad that his parts were limited and acted as a reminder of what was happening and it really benefited from beign used sparingly.

Rowan – I’m in love with Rowan so this is very very biased, however, we see him trying to live a mortal life and how he copes with magic and as you can expect it’s not too well but it is nice that we get to see that more down to earth perspective and him gaining a respect for the determination of humans.

Aedion – I’m really mixed on how I feel about him, on the one had I like him and his loyalty and on the other it pains me and how childish and just blatantly annoying he is. We do get to learn more about his backstory which is very interesting so that’s a positive that came out of it. I might grow some more warmth toward him in later books but right now he’s like ice cream in winter. You like ice-cream but you can’t wait for it to get better when the sun comes out.

Elide – Again this is exactly how I felt in Heir of Fire with Manon. I assume she’s going to grow but I don’t really like reading her story line but can understand why it’s there.

Lysandra – I like this girl, I like the twist we get with her and I like that Aelin has a female companion. That’s the one thing I don’t read enough of is having a badass chick with a kickass female friend and it really works and it’s so good to see Aelin and Lysandra build trust and become friends. She’s really slipped into the place of Nehemia without destroying the previous friendship.

Arobynn – I haven’t read The Assassin’s Blade so it may change my opinion but I’m glad that in the main series we get some involvement and it was a really good stimulus for Aelin’s character. He was extremely necessary for the plot of this book to push it forward. But he is so unpleasant to read with and that’s the point.

Romance

So the romantic element of this book is not a key area even though it is brought up steadily through the book. Personally I am a fan of where it’s heading but it is a change and evolution which is interesting because in a lot of young adult books the romance doesn’t evolve. The pairings tend to be pretty much the same and I’m more than happy for this story to take a different direction and have a different dynamic compared to the other books I’ve read. I won’t know how I feel about it until the end of the series and when I can reflect upon it as a whole.

Setting

There isn’t much setting to this and I don’t think I realised that till just now. It’s not a bad thing because we’ve had a lot of it trickled through the whole series that on book four you should kinda have a grip by now.

Story

This book is a lot of revenge and picking away the pieces that have built up in the first half of the series. A lot changed and it takes a while to sink in. The pacing was a bit uncomfortable and it took me over a week to read it and I really struggled at points because I was halfway in and it was a lot of necessary set-up and it felt like nothing had happened but it all started to come together and by that point I really started to fly through it.

Plot

Words cannot describe how good it is and how good it is getting. My world collapsed three times reading this book I think? And each time I wasn’t sure if I could go on but I did each time and I’m glad I did. You won’t see where it’s going because I didn’t and usually I see what will happen and it was so nice to be surprised.

Writing

My favourite part about the writing is that there are so many perspectives and they feel like completely different characters, I never felt like I wasn’t sure about what I was reading and that’s the best part.

Villain

So I’m at 5/6 villians?

King of Adarlan

Maeve

Arobynn

Manon

Mother Blackbeak

And another that is revealed at the end.

That’s a lot to keep track of, but Queen of Shadows is really important for the confrontation aspect and is a big turning point and that’s all I can say.

Goal

I can’t tell you without spoiling it but we are on a good track and some solid progress has been made.

Author You’ve Read the Most Books From

Robert Muchamore. I’ve read at least 13 of his books but it was when I was younger and mainly a series called Cherub which is kinda a boys series but I was so sick of girly romance books and it was just enjoyable.

Best Sequel Ever

The Dream Thieves by Maggie Steifvater just because it lived up to the first book and was better and really made me need to finish the series.

Currently Reading

Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas and it’s going very slowly.

Drink of Choice While Reading

Nothing. If anything it will be hot chocolate but I usually drink in bursts so it’s unlikely for me to drink anything.

E-reader or Physical Book

E-reader, I travel a lot and spend a lot of time reading at university and on the bus so it’s more convenient to read on a kindle ad it’s lighter when I have such heavy university books.

Fictional Character you Probably Would Have Actually Dated in High School

St Clare from Anna and The French Kiss because he is so similar to my current boyfriend and lovely and the personalities are really alike.

Glad you Gave This Book a Chance

The Raven Boys by Maggie Steifvater. I tried reading Shiver and hated it so I’m glad I tried again with this series because it is amazing.

Hidden Gem Book

All These Things I’ve Done by Gabrielle Zevin. This is a really good book and series and I loved it even though I don’t hear things about it.

Important Moment of Your Reading Life

Finishing The Last Dodo which was a doctor who book, it was the first real book I finished and I’ve not stopped since then.

Just Finished

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins. It was sweet and lovely and great and a nice breakup to what I usually read.

Kind of Books you Won’t read

Horror or War. Just not interested.

Major Book Hangover Because of

City of Glass by Cassandra Clare. I read this before it was known that we would get more books and I just felt so lost knowing that it was done because I loved the characters.

Number of Bookcases You Own

One. I’m not really a big book owner. I’m a library kid and don’t really have the money but as soon as I move out and have a real job I know I’ll start buying books.

One Book you Have Read Multiple Times

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

Preferred Place to Read

Sunbed, I get through books so quickly on holiday. But if it’s summer then I like to go on a long walk to a park and read there or in winter I really like reading in libraries. I tend to need a small level of background noise.

Quote That Inspires You/Gives you All the Feels From a Book You’ve Read

I don’t have one. Books are stories for me rather than quotes that stick with me.

Reading Regret

Daughter of Smoke and Bones by Laini Taylor but specifically Dreams of Gods and Monsters.

Series You Started and Need to Finish and Can Finish

Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer, I’ve been trying to complete series and catch up so this is currently one of the few series I can finish.

I really enjoyed this and as long as you accept it I think most people will.

Characters

This is a pretty decent bunch overall.

Anna – She goes through waves but for the most part I like her, she starts off a bit weak but as time passes she gains more insight and knowledge into her behaviour and others. She acts very jelous and tries to make others feel the same way she does. It’s nice that she finally accepts Paris and her situation however badly she handles it.

St. Clair- I like him because I have an English boyfriend so I’m very biased because he reminds me of my relationship with him mannerisms and choice of words. I’m used to being teased and tormented so this felt really familiar with me which was nice. There wasn’t enough depth to hi and we didn’t really get the full picture such as his flaws; the main one being he can’t stand up for himself?

Meredith – I like her but we don’t really get to know much about her so I would like to know more about who she is and what she stands for rather than just football and being in love with St Clair. I think she could have been more of a developed character.

Rashmi – She was vital in turning points and forcing Anna to come to terms with reality and was the one to show her the things she was blind to.

Josh – I don’t know, he was just the obligatory best friend who was there for St Clair and give Anna the little hidden insight.

Bridgette – She seemed so important and then just not. I think it was completely ridiculous of Anna to act in the way she did. It was just overdramatic for what it was and that their friendship essentially meant nothing, not even the chance for her to explain.

Romance

Technically this is just a book about cheating…. And I’m not an advocate for it but when you get into this you need to accept it and accept that it’s Anna and St Clair learning each other and becoming friends when you know it will be something more. It’s also easier because it’s made quite clear that Ellie is not to be liked and I think this is really unfair because we don’t get enough of an insight to make that decision. I like the way they connect but it took too long for the crash to happen. Anna should not have accepted Étienne not ending his relationship for so long. And that’s the main problem. I wasted just a little bit more of them being together in a relationship rather than the awkward unknowing of categorisation.

I would not categorise this as insta-love, she had an infatuation for a pretty boy that then developed. This in my book is ok because sometimes you just want a guy with callipygian.

Setting

I like the way Paris is portrayed, most people are just too turousity about it and I think this book relies on people knowing the tropes of Paris, which isn’t a bad thing, but the reader knowing Paris is really what creates the setting.

Story

There are plenty of flaws, who would send their daughter to Paris but I can forgive that because it’s not the point. It’s just a nice place to have a love story isn’t it?

Writing

What I really liked was the way you could tell the emotion and inclination of speech and you could hear it. I was emotionally attached and kept telling myself I had to sleep and it took 2 hours and 100 pages before finding an appropriate stopping point. The writing really draws you in and you can’t let it go and you just need it. I liked that things were interlinked and what was happening in school was also being related to Anna and her situation.

So I’m finally ready to write my full review of Clockwork Princess after reflecting on it for a week. There will be spoilers; it’s the 3rd book. This book has a lot of faults for me so if you’re not interested in reading that then this isn’t for you.

Characters

There are a lot of characters in this but it’s pretty easy to keep track of the main side characters but it is a bit trickier with the minor roles such as the Consul. The Shadowhuter world is very based around surnames making it is easier to keep track of families and their affiliations and is also a nice throwback to the mortal instruments and seeing which family continued such as Charlotte’s child being Fairchild which is Clary’s family.

Tessa – I don’t like her, she’s too much of a damsel in distress and then suddenly she’s meant to be this great powerful woman with magic but we see less of her power in this book. I don’t understand why she keep trying to save herself and then it makes no difference; there’s no need for it, I would rather it not be in it because these scenes make me less inclined toward her. It was annoying her saying that you can love two people and hearing her inner thoughts, I don’t hate her but we certainly would not be friends or affiliated. I do admit that the ending with her and her immortality is nice and I like that she seemed to have developed and I would like more of that version of Tessa in the present day.

Will – I don’t like Will. I just don’t and there’s no point discussing it because no one seems to agree.

Jem aka Brother Zachariah- Jem is pure and true and beautiful. And he had always been, his character grew throughout the story and his passion and love grew and he just worked as a character. Him being Brother Zachariah was just a really nice addition and didn’t feel shoehorned in and I really enjoyed that aspect.

Cecily – I liked her involvement but there’s just not an awful lot of her to really dig into. I like her fire and determination and it was just refreshing in this story having someone who knows where there head is at.

Charlotte – She went through a lot in this book and the end was really rewarding. I’m glad she kept at it and you saw her struggle and come to terms with everything while still staying strong and being the mother goose of the family.

Magnus Bane – I don’t know how I would have felt if he wasn’t int his book, he was just the key piece to so many stories and I really like him and he was funny and daft but strong and got the job done. I can’t wait to read the Bane Chronicles

Romance

Don’t get me started. I don’t like Will and Tessa and I was routing for Jem and Tessa but I do not agree with her getting both. I don’t think she should have been with Will end of, or I will compromise and say that I needed to see Will’s character grow and change and their relationship not happen until further down the line. Tessa jumped way too quickly after finding Jem had died and it was just ridiculous. I’m seriously concerned for the people who think that’s ok and like Will and Tessa but it’s a major opinion that I don’t agree with.

For this being a major element of the story I did not enjoy it or agree with a large portion of it and it just wasn’t right for me.

Sophie and Gideon are lovely if not a bit stumbly as well as Gabriele and Cecily who are just a power couple.

Setting

I found this harder because I was born in Scotland and I know a lot of the city and counties and some of it didn’t feel right. At one point I’m sure Wales was being called Yorkshire and I was just too confused. I don’t have the problem when it’s American states of different countries because I don’t have that knowledge to enforce on the book but when I know where everything is, it’s really hard and draws me out of the story but I can’t blame the writing for this.

Story

I like where it went but it was too long and I wish some parts were cut out and others were focused on. Such as the whole saving Jem….. What was the point; it didn’t add anything and everything happening to Tessa. I would rather a bigger fight with Mortmain. Like the culmination of 3 books was finished in 20 pages and then we had 100 pages of everything after. I think that ruined the pacing of the book in these sections but overall it went quite well and flowed nicely although it was a tad too long for me.

Writing

I’ve always liked the way Cassandra Clare writes and that’s why I keep coming back and why people can read these so fast due to it being whimsical and sweet.

Villain

This was done poorly, he died too easily and was just a disappointment because then the main focus of the story wasn’t this so why was it treated like the end of the world. I know that it continues because of the Mortal Instruments but I just think it was trying to work out too perfectly. I can see where the breadcrumbs were put in the story so I knew it was coming but it was too quick and you didn’t get to savour it or panic when it was happening or try and speculate who was going to make it out. But no, everyone has to live don’t they?

Goal

They got their relationship, Tessa found out what she was and Mortmain is dead.

My main overall problem is that Cassandra Clare just tried to please everyone and make everything work out and for me that doesn’t work. I admire her being able to find a reason for each resolve but sometimes people need to die such as Max; that was an impact. I know it may feel like I’m being very negative but I did enjoy this book I would just have liked a little bit more and some changes would just make it a piece of gold.

This series is so weird. It feels like it’s two books with two different stories. The only thing linking them is the characters but they don’t feel like the same characters from the beginning. It doesn’t feel well connected and I didn’t know what I was getting into in this last book and it wasn’t a pleasant surprise.

Characters

The characters are not the strong point of this story and for the general part they are just kind of annoying. They are each different and you can tell them apart but I don’t really like the main characters.

Romance

I don’t know why it was trying to be a love triangle when it so clearly wasn’t. Apart from that this story was no longer about the romance element like the first two books.

Setting

We do learn more about the world and the history and backstory which is nice. World building in the last book in a series isn’t really that important because you can’t have it going forward because it’s the end. It was nice to get the questions answered but it wasn’t all that interesting apart from the information bout he plague and how it came into effect. There is a lot of moving about and flashbacks so it’s hard to keep track of.

Story

It’s about a rebellion and a plague that mutates and then having to survive and find a cure. How this series got here I could not tell you. Everything just feels so disjointed and the time jumps in too large a section that you don’t know why people are acting like things are ending because you haven’t experienced that. This book tries to tell you how you should feel rather than portraying a point of view that you have the decision to side with and to be involved and have that emotional attachment.

Plot

It’s dull and boring and just nothing heart wrenching or suspenseful happens, it just need that extra kick, a hit of chilli in your standard mac and cheese to really give it some depth and meaning. I like complex, I’ve read so many books and studied drama that I can tell where things are going so I need someone to give me difficulty sometimes and I need that little bit more.

Writing

It’s fine, it is not good enough nor bad enough to be noteworthy. The inclusion of poetry and songs and creative outlets are enjoyable and brings in a different aspect but this doesn’t save the overall storyline

Villain

The Society is meant to be the bad guy in this I think but they are more an opposing force which you’re not really seeing you just know it’s bad.

Goal

The plague is cured and there is now a voting system picking three parties.

This was a shame for me; it was not the same disappointment for me as A Dream of God and Monsters by Laini Taylor because the first two books were not nearly on the same level as the daughter of smoke and bones series. But it’s a let-down because it turned into something that I don’t think it should have. It tried to be more than average and that for me made it worse.